The Hyundai Veracruz (), also known as the Hyundai ix55 in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, is a

mid-size Mid-size—also known as intermediate—is a vehicle size class which originated in the United States and is used for cars larger than compact cars and smaller than full-size cars. "Large family car" is a UK term and a part of the D-segment in t ...

crossover that was manufactured by the South Korean manufacturer Hyundai from 2006 to 2015. The Veracruz was sold in the

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South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

and the

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. It was also imported to

and parts of

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from 2007 to 2011. The Veracruz was discontinued in other countries, except

. Its name refers to the Mexican state of

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

; however, despite being named after the Mexican state, it was never actually sold in Mexico.

History

The official date of unveiling in South Korea was October 12, 2006, and was made available in the United States as a 2007 model. The Veracruz went on sale in March 2007, and is Hyundai's largest crossover SUV. It replaced the truck based Terracan that was sold worldwide except for

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. The Veracruz is built on a Hyundai Santa Fe platform. The revamped 2011 Veracruz was based on the same platform as the Kia Sorento. The

gets its name from a state in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, continuing the Western theme from the small Tucson SUV and mid-size Hyundai Santa Fe SUV. Powering the Veracruz is a 3.8 L

V6 engine A V6 engine is a six- cylinder piston engine where the cylinders and cylinder blocks share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. The first V6 engines were designed and produced independently by Marmon Motor Car Company, ...

with an Aisin sourced six speed Shiftronic

Automatic transmission An automatic transmission (AT) or automatic gearbox is a multi-speed transmission (mechanics), transmission used in motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving conditions. The 1904 ...

. In Europe, it was sold only with 3.0 L CRDI V6 diesel S-Line engine with Variable geometry turbocharger and . In 2008, the Veracruz was also sold in some European countries as the ix55.

Features and options

The Veracruz was available in 3 models during its six-year run: the base GLS, the SE and the luxurious Limited, in Front Wheel Drive or All Wheel Drive configurations. Standard features on all Veracruz models included full power equipment, air conditioning with allergen filter, an AM/FM stereo with SiriusXM

Satellite Radio Satellite radio is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s ITU Radio Regulations (RR) as a '' broadcasting-satellite service''. The satellite's signals are broadcast nationwide, across a much wider geographical area than te ...

, CD/MP3 player, USB and auxiliary inputs for portable media devices, steering wheel mounted audio system and cruise controls, third row seating, aluminium alloy wheels, a V6 engine, an

automatic transmission An automatic transmission (AT) or automatic gearbox is a multi-speed transmission (mechanics), transmission used in motor vehicles that does not require any input from the driver to change forward gears under normal driving conditions. The 1904 ...

, and colour keyed side mirrors and door handles. Additional options included a six disc, in dash CD/MP3 changer,

Infinity Infinity is something which is boundless, endless, or larger than any natural number. It is denoted by \infty, called the infinity symbol. From the time of the Ancient Greek mathematics, ancient Greeks, the Infinity (philosophy), philosophic ...

surround sound, leather trimmed seating surfaces, heated and ventilated seats, a power sunroof, smart key access (featuring a "Twist to Start" ignition system), chrome accents, and touch screen GPS Navigation with SiriusXM Travel Link service. One feature that was not available from the factory on any Veracruz model was a

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is li ...

hands free telephone system, though one was available as an accessory through Hyundai that replaced the sunglasses holder in the overhead console. However, the optional

hands free accessory kit did not support A2DP wireless stereo streaming of music, as it did not integrate into the Veracruz's audio system, and instead featured its own, integral control panel and speaker.

Discontinuation

The Hyundai Veracruz was discontinued on November 15, 2011, in other countries except South Korea. The last produced models of 2011 were rebadged in 2012, and carried over the extended year. Hyundai announced on April 6, 2012, that the seven passenger version of the new 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe will replace the Veracruz, and that production of the current Veracruz would stop "around November 2012". In 2015, the South Korean version was discontinued due to Euro 6 emission standards.

Safety

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) said crash results indicated, "... a low risk of any significant injuries in a crash of this severity" which is the highest result possible. The U.S.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA ) is an agency of the U.S. federal government, part of the Department of Transportation, focused on automobile safety regulations. NHTSA is charged with writing and enforcing Feder ...

(NHTSA) found similar results when they tested the Veracruz, awarding it five stars after its frontal crash test for both passenger and driver and in the side impact event. On November 15, 2007, the IIHS declared Veracruz vehicles built after August 2007 a ''Best Safety Pick'' for side, rear, and frontal impact protection.IIHS News , November 15, 2007
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References

External links

Hyundai: Veracruz
Official American Homepage
Hyundai: Veracruz
Official South Korean Homepage
Chicago Sun-Times: Veracruz does it right

JB car pages: Hyundai Veracruz

2008 Hyundai Veracruz Limited AWD - Comparison Tests

* November 15, 2007
Washingtonpost: That's No Lexus, It's a Hyundai
* {{Hyundai light truck/SUV timeline, international markets, 1991–present Crossover sport utility vehicles Front-wheel-drive vehicles All-wheel-drive vehicles

2010s cars Cars introduced in 2006 Cars discontinued in 2015